View full sizeFile PhotoFlushing Township trustee candidate Jared Staley (center) has been charged with one count of perjury by the state Attorney General's office for allegedly falsely filling out an affidavit for candidacy.

FLUSHING TOWNSHIP, MI -- In her six years with the office, Genesee County elections supervisor Doreen Fulcher has never seen an issue over campaign finance go to court.

“In most cases, it’s not a normal course of business for us to have to turn somebody over to the Attorney General’s office,” said Fulcher. “Mr. Staley has not come in and try to have this dealt with.”

The Attorney General’s Office announced Monday its Public Integrity Unit had charged the 23-year-old Staley with perjury after he allegedly falsely stated he was qualified to run for trustee and filed all outstanding reports and paid late fees and fines.

“Staley has been contacted several times regarding these election law violations and failed to comply with the law,” a statement from the Attorney General’s Office reads. “Michigan Election Law contains a special statute for committing perjury on an affidavit of candidacy. It is called “False Swearing” and makes it a five year felony to swear to an affidavit of candidacy that contains false statements.”

Calls made to Staley have not been returned. He faces an Aug. 7 pre-trial hearing – on election day – in front of 68th District Court Judge M. Cathy Dowd.

Fulcher said the clerk’s office sent Staley a reminder stating he was not in compliance with the campaign finance law prior to him filling out an affidavit before turning over the case to the Attorney General, as pursuant to campaign finance law.

A portion of the affidavit states making a false statement is perjury, and the charges allude to three missing reports for contributions and fee not yet paid from Staley’s role as treasurer of the Committee for Imperative Political Action, a group started during the recall attempt against township Treasurer Bill Noecker and Trustee Mike Gardner.

The group, according to records, raised $5,781.16, but post-election statements filed by Staley have been rejected due to several issues, including incorrect dates, lack of full listing of in-kind contributions and no pre-election campaign statement.

With the matter now being taken up by the Attorney General’s Office, Fulcher said the issue is out of the county’s hands at this point and time.